Some types of electrical equipment, such as computers, require coaxial conductors for the multiconductor cables used in the equipment. Co-axial conductors comprise a center conductor surrounded by a layer of insulation, a shielding layer, and an outer covering layer which is over the shielding layer. The cross section of a coaxial conductor is circular and symmetrical about the central conductor. It is essential that the symmetry not be disturbed if the co-axial conductor is to have the required electrical characteristics. Many wire feeders compress conductors between feed wheels during the feeding operations and for that reason are not suitable for feeding coaxial conductors. In accordance with one aspect thereof the invention is directed to the achievement of a wire feeder for co-axial conductors which does not disturb the symmetry of the conductors during the feeding operation.
In accordance with another aspect thereof, the invention is directed to the achievement of a feeding apparatus which is capable of feeding a plurality of wires and which is also capable of feeding only selected wires from the plurality. This aspect of the invention is important in manufacturing processes in which a series of cables are produced as required and the cables are not all of the same length and do not have the same number of conductors therein. In other words, identical cables are not produced serially but are rather produced one at a time in order to satisfy the requirements of a manufacturing process in which cables of different lengths and having different numbers of conductors are produced in the order needed.